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Irafaanshia November stands in front of her demolished hut in Hornlee, Knysna.
- Riots broke out in Knysna on Sunday, with hundreds of people taking to the streets.
- Shops were looted and traffic on the N2 stopped.
- One of the Red Ants, who were demolishing the huts, was shot, but was wearing a bulletproof vest.
On Sunday, hundreds of people rioted in Knysna, looted businesses and stopped traffic on the national highway.
An officer from the Red Ants was shot, but “fortunately he was wearing a bulletproof vest” and “is not seriously injured,” according to the municipality. Chaos appeared to have erupted after the Red Ants demolished two huts, acting on behalf of the municipality.
Knysna Township Mayor Elrick van Aswegen said: “The buildings in question were illegal structures that were built illegitimately on land that was not owned by the invaders.”
The Lemco Garage and its shop at the entrance to Hornlee were looted, as was the adjacent bottle shop at the Hornlee Hotel. Later, the police recovered some stolen wine.
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Southern Cape Police spokesman Capt Malcom Pojie said stun grenades were used to disperse about 1,000 protesters.
At least four people were arrested for public violence. A police officer was injured.
The occupants of the demolished huts said they were left destitute.
“I was still sleeping when the red ant people came to destroy my hut,” Irafaanshia November said. “People didn’t contact me. They just started destroying my hard work.”
Retrended
November was reduced during the confinement. She had been staying with an aunt and 14 family members in a four-room house. There were already two shacks in the backyard and she had to find her own place. She used her money from the FIU to buy the building material. Moved in on Friday. On Sunday he was crushed and thrown into the open field.
The other owner of the hut, Leander Meugene, said: “They pushed my mother and my aunt and continued with the plan to destroy my house. It was then that community members began to come in numbers to support me.”
She said they asked to see clearance for the demolition. Then chaos broke out and the police and fire ants were forced out of Hornlee on the N2.
Johnathan Wildeman, a neighbor, was shot several times by rubber bullets: three in the chest, one in the right eye, both arms and the right leg. “First they shot me in the chest. I tried to cover my face, that’s how they shot me in both arms, and finally they managed to shoot me in the face,” he said.
“The Red Ants started shooting at us. Then we threw rocks at them and pushed them out of our neighborhood,” Wildeman said.
On Monday, community leaders met with Van Aswegen. A follow-up meeting was scheduled for Friday with the community.
